Moving Towards Dignity: Using Inclusive and Equitable Fundraising Language to Dismantle Philanthropy’s White Savior Narrative by Stephanie Sheehan [email protected] Capstone Research Report Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Master of Nonprofit Administration Degree in the School of Management directed by Dr. Marco Tavanti San Francisco, California Spring 2021 Dedication To my fellow fundraisers: We have a responsibility to the communities we represent. Let’s listen actively and center their needs above all. Abstract This qualitative research examines the role that the white savior narrative plays in fundraising and philanthropy. I will begin with a literature review of relevant topics including, white saviorism, examples of white saviorism in nonprofit communications, power dynamics, effective fundraising strategies and donor motivations, inclusive and equitable language and centering the community in fundraising. A content analysis of 20 annual report leadership letters from 20 501(c)3 organizations demonstrates the ways in which nonprofit leadership individuals talk about their programs and program beneficiaries. The content analysis shows that most leadership individuals are white, do not reference equity in their letters and mostly describe program beneficiaries in a generally negative light, thus depicting saviorism. A summary of semi-structured interviews shows how frontline fundraisers, nonprofit leaders and board members all agree that despite the prevalence of the white savior narrative, it is both damaging and not an impactful fundraising method. Finally, I will reveal a new model for dignity-focused fundraising that centers the needs of the community and I will offer recommendations for how fundraisers can generate revenue in an inclusive and equitable way that ultimately centers the community. My recommendations include thoughtful use of fundraising language, prioritization of unrestricted funds and an emphasis on donor relationships that align with organizational values. Keywords: white savior, philanthropy, fundraising, equitable language, community-centric Table of Contents List of Tables viii List of Figures ix Section 1. Introduction 1 Section 2. Literature Review 4 Section 3. Methods and Approaches 27 Section 4. Data Analysis: Content Analysis & Interviews 29 Section 5. Implications and Recommendations: Honoring Communities With Dignity and Respect 48 Section 6. Conclusion: A Better Approach to Fundraising 52 References 54 Appendix A: Content Analysis Codebook 57 Appendix B: Full Results of Content Analysis 61 Appendix C: Prepared Interview Questions for Semi-Structured Interviews 76 Author’s Bio 78 vii List of Tables Table 1. “How to tell compelling stories while avoiding savior complex and exploitation” p. 19 Table 2. Organization Name and Identity of Letter Signer p. 31 Table 3. Organization Name and Tone and View of State of The World p. 34 Table 4. Organization Name and Mention of Equity, Dignity and Description of Beneficiaries p. 36 Table 5. Race/Ethnicity of Leadership Signer and Mention of Equity, Dignity and Description of Beneficiaries p. 39 viii List of Figures Figure 1. Leadership Racial/Ethnic Identity p. 30 Figure 2. Overall Tone p. 33 Figure 3. View of State of The World p. 33 Figure 4. Mention of Equity p. 35 Figure 5. Reference to Dignity/Honor p. 35 Figure 6. Description of Beneficiaries p. 36 Figure 7. White Signers - Description of Beneficiaries p. 38 Figure 8. Non-White Signers - Description of Beneficiaries - 100% Generally Positive p. 38 Figure 9. Donor-Centric vs. Dignity-Focused Fundraising p. 49 ix Section 1. Introduction In the summer of 2020, we witnessed what can be described as a national racial uprising. Compounded by an intensely polarized political climate leading up to the presidential election, a global pandemic then wreaked havoc across our communities, took too many lives, livelihoods and jobs, and shook our health systems to their very core. Then we watched former police officer Derek Chauvin kneel on the neck of and eventually murder George Floyd. This galvanized a nation and enraged many that had previously been able to ignore the treatment of Black men, women and children. Police have taken many lives before Derek Chauvin took George Floyd’s (Breonna Taylor, Philando Castille, Freddie Gray, Eric Garner, Michael Brown…) and the Black Lives Matter movement had been hard at work for years, but many agree that the timing, cruelty, the visuals and deliberate violent nature of this case felt different. Americans of all identities still hurting from the pandemic took to the streets in a wave of protests to affirm their support for Black Lives and call out the blatant injustices of police brutality. The combination of our heightened political climate and the intense national pain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic placed racial justice issues under a microscope. Some of us took a cold hard look in the mirror to confront our own participation in white supremacy and the privileges it allows us, and others doubled down on belief systems refusing to acknowledge any personal responsibility. Regardless of our stance or position, the summer of 2020 will be one we all remember. Organizations across industries and sectors publicly affirmed their support for Black Lives Matter and made public commitments to address diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)--although the legitimacy and actuality behind those statements remain to be seen. The nonprofit sector was no exception as many of our own organizations affirmed their dedication to DEI both internally and externally. As many of us looked around at the makeup of our board of directors, leadership staff and donors, we saw whiteness. Within fundraising and philanthropy, we began discussions about how to diversify our boards and our donor pipelines. There was a palpable mad dash to recruit board members of color and reach out to donors of color; however, there were also questions about the authenticity of this effort. Were our organizations really ready to invite donors of color into our spaces with intention? Have we done the proper pre-work and laid the groundwork so that we could actually be inclusive? Would donors of color 1 feel that they belong in our organizations? These issues were not new last summer and many nonprofit leaders had been addressing them for some time. As I began to think about my own role in the white-dominated spaces of fundraising and philanthropy, the white savior narrative kept ringing in my head. As a white woman frontline major gifts fundraiser at a child rights organization, it is my job to ask ultra-high-net-worth individual donors for their support. These partnerships are with predominantly white donors who are philanthropically supporting largely Black and Brown children around the world. Too often they view their role in this exchange as a savior and too often I do not correct them. Donors will approach me with their own ideas about where they want to give their money and ask me to find out what is possible for them. A traditionally donor-centric culture of philanthropy teaches that we must get close to our donors, understand our donors’ interests and philanthropic goals and ultimately meet their desires in order to secure funding. This gives donors all the power and removes any dignity or voice from our program beneficiaries. In the pages that follow, I argue that this model of donor-centric fundraising is yet another system within our society rooted in white supremacy. The white savior narrative is the process by which white, wealthy individuals in positions of privilege or power act on their emotional response to poverty by using philanthropy to ‘save’ individuals they regard as needy or vulnerable. After an in-depth look at the white savior narrative and how it plays a role in philanthropy, followed by a discussion on contributing factors to successful fundraising, I will offer solutions for how we, as fundraisers, can thoughtfully guide our donors and supporters away from saviorism. I suggest that we use more inclusive and equitable fundraising language to help shift power dynamics and honor the communities in which we work with dignity and with respect. I ask that we really listen to program beneficiaries and view those individuals as the experts and leaders that they are. I challenge the notion that we need to lean on any savior narrative in order to appeal to donors--that’s the easy road. Finally, I call on my fellow fundraisers to do the honorable work of using our position to guide our donors the right way, and that this does not need to have any negative impact on our ability to successfully raise funds. In fact, this is our responsibility--to our organizations and most importantly to the communities we represent. I will begin with a literature review, which will provide an overview of key concepts, including the white savior narrative and the role it plays in nonprofit communication and fundraising as well as how it has impacted program beneficiaries and the communities our organizations represent. Next, I will discuss effective fundraising, what resonates with donors and power dynamics within the donor 2 relationship. The literature review will then offer examples of inclusive and equitable language and the impact of centering the community in the philanthropic process. The data analysis section will provide the results of my continued qualitative research collection, which includes a content analysis of nonprofit annual report leadership letters and semi-structured interview conversations with seven expert individuals. Finally, I will offer my recommendations for how fundraisers can help shift the narrative towards dignity and away from the white savior narrative. 3 Section 2. Literature Review Understanding White Saviorism In 2012, Nigerian-American author Teju Cole coined the term White Savior Industrial Complex in a series of tweets and subsequent articles. The White Savior Industrial Complex became known as the impact of a white person’s seemingly well-intentioned charity or activism for a non-white person or community.